November 2025 Exhibit
Facing You, Exhibition Exploring Humanituy through Portraiture
Imogen is pleased to be presenting its eleventh annual invitational exhibition exploring humanity through portraiture. This year’s exhibition will include the paintings of Portland based artists Reed Clarke, Patricia L. Giraud and Ruth Shively as well as local talent of Michael Conner, Yasmina Nysten, and Amelia Santiago; all exploring the essence of humanity. This evocative collection moves beyond a surface glance of an individual, inviting the viewer a step closer and to consider the underlying. Perhaps even to see ourselves through the eyes of others and what it means to be a part of humankind. Each portrait tells a story; we invite you to take part. The exhibition opens during Astoria’s Second Saturday Artwalk, November 8th, 12:00 – 8:00 pm and will be on view through December 8th. Artists will be at the gallery from 5 – 8 pm, November 8th and available to answer questions about their work.
Many artists at some point in their career have placed focus on the human form as subject matter, for some it is a practice of study, for others it’s a means to participate with humanity on a more intimate level. All of these artists fall into that category. Portraiture becomes a vehicle utilized to explore deeper reflection of who we are and what we convey via nonverbal communication, simply by stance, expression, or direction of gaze. These artists, all incredibly skilled with chosen medium bring suggestion of story and history through portrayal of individuals.
Reed Clarke of Portland, Oregon has dedicated much of his career as a fine artist, painting others. Often his subjects are known literary greats but just as often, Clarke also creates his own characters, referencing people he’s observed in daily life while bringing in elements to create dynamic composition. Known for his skill as a painter and printmaker, he has had his work juried into Clatsop Community College’s prestigious Au Naturel: Nudes in the 21st Century exhibition several years running, receiving a first prize award as well as a purchase award from CCC. His skill is apparent in the nuance of palette to create mood and emotion through an intimate look and consideration into another’s experience, perhaps with a goal of fostering greater understanding and acceptance of who we are. About his work Clarke states: “Faces and figures inhabit all my paintings and when I try to stray from this subject something I can’t resist always calls me back. In my work I hope to elicit a statement about being human that is familiar and also seems impossible to say as clearly or completely in other media. When possible, I seek to emphasize the geometric shapes formed by different parts of the composition and bring out the abstract surface rhythms of the composition. Ultimately however, I’m striving for a balance between recording a human subject that is compelling and creating a paint surface on the canvas that engages and rewards the viewer.”
This year we also include the acrylic and ink paintings of Michael Conner, an artist and poet residing on the Long Beach Peninsula. His work, while not necessarily traditional portraiture brings a philosophical flair through distinct design elements utilizing color and line. Like Reed Clarke, Michael also takes great inspiration from the great poets such as Baudelaire, Rimbaud and Artaud. He looks to combine his interests in the written word with the visual language and as such, cites the work of the impressionists, dadaist, surrealists and specifically the artist Egon Schiele for his inspiration. About his process and perspective on art he states: “Art is a state of grace where the moment becomes synchronized and moves through this fragile existence filling the soul. Life itself becomes conceptualized and perceived as a work of art revealing itself.”
We are excited to welcome back Patricia L. Giraud to this year’s exhibition. An accomplished print maker from Portland, Giraud includes her intaglio prints focusing on the human form. Taking inspiration from the natural world she places the figure within the landscape. While not necessarily traditional portraiture, her figurative work depicts a somewhat mysterious quality, conjuring a deep sense of nostalgia. About her work she states: “Intaglio offers a variety of techniques with which to express anatomy, forms shaped by light and shadow, large forces at work and intimate moments.” Giraud’s work has been widely exhibited with her work placed in collections throughout the US, Canada, and England.
Also included to this year’s exhibition are the evocative oil paintings by Yasmina Nysten a Finnish/Lebanese artist. Nysten, who now calls Astoria home, brings several paintings, showcasing her vast experience in figurative painting. Typically taking a narrative approach and alluding to storytelling she keeps focus on the individual portrayed. Vivid and striking color adds to an overall mood, setting the tone for each piece. About her work she states: “The evolution of my artistic process has been marked by a dynamic interplay between intentionality and serendipity. While I’ve explored a wide array of mediums—acrylic, oil, markers, ink, and more—the one unchanging element that threads through all my work is a deep, unwavering preoccupation with the human form as the central subject, the axis around which my explorations and experiments inevitably revolve.” Nysten has exhibited her work extensively across the globe, including an exhibition in Qatar and previously in Beirut, Paris, Dubai and New York City as well as many other art venues throughout the world.
We also welcome back the work of Amelia Santiago. Santiago, who lives in Astoria, is not new to Imogen, some may recall her incredible felt sculpture of our canine friends and other elaborate needle felted wool sculptural pieces. She balances her work as a fiber artist equally with her love of the painting process. After graduating from Pacific Northwest College of Art, Santiago traveled to Iceland where she became enamored with wool fiber, this led to a decade long career of creating 3-dimensional animal portraiture. Still, she never let the process of painting stray too far. About her work and processes she states: “I have been making art my entire life and I have always been drawn to the figure, both human and animal and often the two together. To me, painting a portrait is not only about the sitter but equally about the artist as well. I see myself in the images I make, and I think about the human condition.”
Joining us again is Ruth Shively, a Portland based artist. Typically drawn to imagery of women she portrays quiet resilience and an innate sense of strength and beauty. About her work she states: “I work largely with the figure, concentrating on women. In awe of the strength women behold, I feel the need to express their character through my work. I can’t explain how I choose my subjects, I go with my instinct and immediate feelings and drawn to stark, positive/negative space. I like humor, mysteriousness, and intimate mood, wanting the viewer to make their own interpretation. I studied drawing and illustration in school but I’m a self-taught painter and prefer this medium as I love the spontaneity of the paint and using color to create space.” Shively, who grew up in the Midwest, has lived in Paris, New York City, Minneapolis and now Portland. She has exhibited her work in numerous group and solo exhibitions that have taken her from Los Angeles to New York and many venues in between.
Facing You, Exhibition Exploring Humanituy through Portraiture
Imogen is pleased to be presenting its eleventh annual invitational exhibition exploring humanity through portraiture. This year’s exhibition will include the paintings of Portland based artists Reed Clarke, Patricia L. Giraud and Ruth Shively as well as local talent of Michael Conner, Yasmina Nysten, and Amelia Santiago; all exploring the essence of humanity. This evocative collection moves beyond a surface glance of an individual, inviting the viewer a step closer and to consider the underlying. Perhaps even to see ourselves through the eyes of others and what it means to be a part of humankind. Each portrait tells a story; we invite you to take part. The exhibition opens during Astoria’s Second Saturday Artwalk, November 8th, 12:00 – 8:00 pm and will be on view through December 8th. Artists will be at the gallery from 5 – 8 pm, November 8th and available to answer questions about their work.
Many artists at some point in their career have placed focus on the human form as subject matter, for some it is a practice of study, for others it’s a means to participate with humanity on a more intimate level. All of these artists fall into that category. Portraiture becomes a vehicle utilized to explore deeper reflection of who we are and what we convey via nonverbal communication, simply by stance, expression, or direction of gaze. These artists, all incredibly skilled with chosen medium bring suggestion of story and history through portrayal of individuals.
Reed Clarke of Portland, Oregon has dedicated much of his career as a fine artist, painting others. Often his subjects are known literary greats but just as often, Clarke also creates his own characters, referencing people he’s observed in daily life while bringing in elements to create dynamic composition. Known for his skill as a painter and printmaker, he has had his work juried into Clatsop Community College’s prestigious Au Naturel: Nudes in the 21st Century exhibition several years running, receiving a first prize award as well as a purchase award from CCC. His skill is apparent in the nuance of palette to create mood and emotion through an intimate look and consideration into another’s experience, perhaps with a goal of fostering greater understanding and acceptance of who we are. About his work Clarke states: “Faces and figures inhabit all my paintings and when I try to stray from this subject something I can’t resist always calls me back. In my work I hope to elicit a statement about being human that is familiar and also seems impossible to say as clearly or completely in other media. When possible, I seek to emphasize the geometric shapes formed by different parts of the composition and bring out the abstract surface rhythms of the composition. Ultimately however, I’m striving for a balance between recording a human subject that is compelling and creating a paint surface on the canvas that engages and rewards the viewer.”
This year we also include the acrylic and ink paintings of Michael Conner, an artist and poet residing on the Long Beach Peninsula. His work, while not necessarily traditional portraiture brings a philosophical flair through distinct design elements utilizing color and line. Like Reed Clarke, Michael also takes great inspiration from the great poets such as Baudelaire, Rimbaud and Artaud. He looks to combine his interests in the written word with the visual language and as such, cites the work of the impressionists, dadaist, surrealists and specifically the artist Egon Schiele for his inspiration. About his process and perspective on art he states: “Art is a state of grace where the moment becomes synchronized and moves through this fragile existence filling the soul. Life itself becomes conceptualized and perceived as a work of art revealing itself.”
We are excited to welcome back Patricia L. Giraud to this year’s exhibition. An accomplished print maker from Portland, Giraud includes her intaglio prints focusing on the human form. Taking inspiration from the natural world she places the figure within the landscape. While not necessarily traditional portraiture, her figurative work depicts a somewhat mysterious quality, conjuring a deep sense of nostalgia. About her work she states: “Intaglio offers a variety of techniques with which to express anatomy, forms shaped by light and shadow, large forces at work and intimate moments.” Giraud’s work has been widely exhibited with her work placed in collections throughout the US, Canada, and England.
Also included to this year’s exhibition are the evocative oil paintings by Yasmina Nysten a Finnish/Lebanese artist. Nysten, who now calls Astoria home, brings several paintings, showcasing her vast experience in figurative painting. Typically taking a narrative approach and alluding to storytelling she keeps focus on the individual portrayed. Vivid and striking color adds to an overall mood, setting the tone for each piece. About her work she states: “The evolution of my artistic process has been marked by a dynamic interplay between intentionality and serendipity. While I’ve explored a wide array of mediums—acrylic, oil, markers, ink, and more—the one unchanging element that threads through all my work is a deep, unwavering preoccupation with the human form as the central subject, the axis around which my explorations and experiments inevitably revolve.” Nysten has exhibited her work extensively across the globe, including an exhibition in Qatar and previously in Beirut, Paris, Dubai and New York City as well as many other art venues throughout the world.
We also welcome back the work of Amelia Santiago. Santiago, who lives in Astoria, is not new to Imogen, some may recall her incredible felt sculpture of our canine friends and other elaborate needle felted wool sculptural pieces. She balances her work as a fiber artist equally with her love of the painting process. After graduating from Pacific Northwest College of Art, Santiago traveled to Iceland where she became enamored with wool fiber, this led to a decade long career of creating 3-dimensional animal portraiture. Still, she never let the process of painting stray too far. About her work and processes she states: “I have been making art my entire life and I have always been drawn to the figure, both human and animal and often the two together. To me, painting a portrait is not only about the sitter but equally about the artist as well. I see myself in the images I make, and I think about the human condition.”
Joining us again is Ruth Shively, a Portland based artist. Typically drawn to imagery of women she portrays quiet resilience and an innate sense of strength and beauty. About her work she states: “I work largely with the figure, concentrating on women. In awe of the strength women behold, I feel the need to express their character through my work. I can’t explain how I choose my subjects, I go with my instinct and immediate feelings and drawn to stark, positive/negative space. I like humor, mysteriousness, and intimate mood, wanting the viewer to make their own interpretation. I studied drawing and illustration in school but I’m a self-taught painter and prefer this medium as I love the spontaneity of the paint and using color to create space.” Shively, who grew up in the Midwest, has lived in Paris, New York City, Minneapolis and now Portland. She has exhibited her work in numerous group and solo exhibitions that have taken her from Los Angeles to New York and many venues in between.
October 2025 Exhibit
Painting the Pacific Northwest
Mathew Goodrich
For the month of October, we are happy to share the sublime landscape paintings of Mathew Goodrich. Working in acrylic and pastel, he echoes the known and unknown places of the region in a timeless manner, giving the feeling of sharing a walk through the eyes of the artist as he takes a daily stroll. The exhibition opens during Astoria’s Second Saturday Artwalk, Saturday October 11th from noon – 8 pm. Goodrich will be at the gallery from 5 - 8 pm that evening and available to answer questions about his work. The exhibition will remain on view through November 3rd.
Mathew Goodrich, who lives in the tiny coastal hamlet of Wheeler, Oregon brings a lush and verdant series of new landscape paintings, celebrating the exquisite beauty of the region. Mathew immerses himself within the lands he cherishes, lending a sense of nostalgia to all he creates. Due to a traumatic brain injury sustained over a decade ago, Mathew’s painting process is unlike most artists, painting from the present and in the moment. He states, “I don’t have the ability to imagine future paintings, and I can no longer carry my past with me.” His paintings are in turn love letters of the places he feels most at home.
Growing up in Portland, Oregon Mathew has always been surrounded by dramatic landscape, from the high desert of the east side of the state to the undeniable beauty of the coast, this love of terrain and adventure led him at an early age to the wilds of Alaska. A man of many hats, he has worked on tugboats, became a builder of custom homes, including log cabins before returning to Portland where he took up custom furniture building. This led to enrollment at the Oregon School of Design where he pursued a degree in architecture, it was during this time that he found his muse in oil painting. His early days of painting were firmly entrenched in abstraction. After a successful career building custom homes in Hawaii, where his injury occurred, Mathew rediscovered his love of painting during rehabilitation, not remembering that he had attended art school, the discovery was a completely new experience that was pure and from the heart. Now working in acrylic and pastel, his landscape paintings maintain that sense of discovery and honesty of what is.
About this series he states: “These paintings are a record of the wild places I visit throughout the north coast and beyond. Landscape painting affords me a subject that suits my long-standing affinity for intense color palettes and vibrant hues while still creating a sense of space and atmosphere and remaining in the abstract. My latest paintings focus on the changing word of bays and estuaries, where landscapes are liminal by their nature, and withdrawing waters leave rich pallets of shimmering mud and shallows that are chaotically strewn with the day’s flotsam and jetsam.”
Painting the Pacific Northwest
Mathew Goodrich
For the month of October, we are happy to share the sublime landscape paintings of Mathew Goodrich. Working in acrylic and pastel, he echoes the known and unknown places of the region in a timeless manner, giving the feeling of sharing a walk through the eyes of the artist as he takes a daily stroll. The exhibition opens during Astoria’s Second Saturday Artwalk, Saturday October 11th from noon – 8 pm. Goodrich will be at the gallery from 5 - 8 pm that evening and available to answer questions about his work. The exhibition will remain on view through November 3rd.
Mathew Goodrich, who lives in the tiny coastal hamlet of Wheeler, Oregon brings a lush and verdant series of new landscape paintings, celebrating the exquisite beauty of the region. Mathew immerses himself within the lands he cherishes, lending a sense of nostalgia to all he creates. Due to a traumatic brain injury sustained over a decade ago, Mathew’s painting process is unlike most artists, painting from the present and in the moment. He states, “I don’t have the ability to imagine future paintings, and I can no longer carry my past with me.” His paintings are in turn love letters of the places he feels most at home.
Growing up in Portland, Oregon Mathew has always been surrounded by dramatic landscape, from the high desert of the east side of the state to the undeniable beauty of the coast, this love of terrain and adventure led him at an early age to the wilds of Alaska. A man of many hats, he has worked on tugboats, became a builder of custom homes, including log cabins before returning to Portland where he took up custom furniture building. This led to enrollment at the Oregon School of Design where he pursued a degree in architecture, it was during this time that he found his muse in oil painting. His early days of painting were firmly entrenched in abstraction. After a successful career building custom homes in Hawaii, where his injury occurred, Mathew rediscovered his love of painting during rehabilitation, not remembering that he had attended art school, the discovery was a completely new experience that was pure and from the heart. Now working in acrylic and pastel, his landscape paintings maintain that sense of discovery and honesty of what is.
About this series he states: “These paintings are a record of the wild places I visit throughout the north coast and beyond. Landscape painting affords me a subject that suits my long-standing affinity for intense color palettes and vibrant hues while still creating a sense of space and atmosphere and remaining in the abstract. My latest paintings focus on the changing word of bays and estuaries, where landscapes are liminal by their nature, and withdrawing waters leave rich pallets of shimmering mud and shallows that are chaotically strewn with the day’s flotsam and jetsam.”
September 2025 Exhibit
We are excited to cap off a busy summer season with the fifth solo exhibition by Darren Orange at Imogen, opening Saturday during Astoria’s Artwalk. He brings his latest series of dynamic and explosive oil paintings, titled Prismatic Pareidolia. Within the series, Orange continues with his bold and energetic style, employing movement synonymous with dance and filling our South Gallery space with powerful color and energy. Darren will be at the gallery during Astoria’s artwalk, 5 – 8 pm and available to answer questions about his work. The exhibition will be on view through October 6th.
Darren Orange, known far and wide for his emotive oil paintings, continues with his use of abstraction within this latest series to communicate his ideas and vision. His process always intertwined with finished composition demands the viewer to take note and participate in the echo left behind from its creation. Utilizing his past work as a springboard he without hesitation jumps head on into pure expression with dramatic color bursts, jolting all to full attention while beckoning for playful and joyous interaction.
Within this provocative exhibition, he pushes the unseen boundaries of mark making as expression. About this series he states: “My approach over the last 25 years is made by free association of intuitive mark making, or automatism and simultaneously representational abstraction. A game of aesthetic chess for both practices. I stretch further from the literal reference and deeper into abstraction. I carve out composition in an investigation of interscape. Some recognizable form may begin to become obvious and as the dance continues it may be worked into completion or destroyed in the event. I work in large blocks of time, often months without interruption on two-dozen or more surfaces at a time. This allows me to think quickly on my feet and make bold committed moves without fear of trying to preserve the “precious painting” or series of successful marks. I free up the canvas to explore risk taking and exploration of new possibilities.”
Through his painting, Orange moves beyond preconceived perception and takes a daring leap into the afterglow of sheer upbeat spontaneity, inviting all to come along for the ride. The shedding of past is apparent while looking directly to the unknown with exuberance and fearlessness. Within this series he brings strong and definite form into his composition, and as the show title, Prismatic Pareidolia references, visual suggestion of content. The departure is evident with the inclusion of paintings that tip into the realm of representational. Through splashes of color, forms come together to take us for that last walk through the garden, enjoying the final blooms while pollinators are busy gathering the last bit of pollen.
Orange’s work has been widely exhibited, reaching all four corners of the United States, including New York, Atlanta, Santa Fe, Portland as well as the Coos Bay Art Museum, Oregon. He has been presented awards from the Oregon Arts Commission, the Ford Family Foundation, and the Ucross Foundation Residency Fellowship. His work has been selected for exhibitions by Michael Klein of the Microsoft Collection, Nat Trottman of the Guggenheim, Bonnie Laing Malcomson formerly with the Portland Art Museum, Margaret Bullock of the Tacoma Art Museum, and many others. Academic institutions such as Portland State University, Peninsula College, Mt Hood Community College, Lower Columbia College, Oregon Coast Council for the Arts have all awarded him with solo exhibitions. He was also selected by the Oregon Arts Commission for the Art in The Governor’s Office program, a prestigious recognition as an Oregon artist. His work can be found in private, public, and corporate collections around the world.
We are excited to cap off a busy summer season with the fifth solo exhibition by Darren Orange at Imogen, opening Saturday during Astoria’s Artwalk. He brings his latest series of dynamic and explosive oil paintings, titled Prismatic Pareidolia. Within the series, Orange continues with his bold and energetic style, employing movement synonymous with dance and filling our South Gallery space with powerful color and energy. Darren will be at the gallery during Astoria’s artwalk, 5 – 8 pm and available to answer questions about his work. The exhibition will be on view through October 6th.
Darren Orange, known far and wide for his emotive oil paintings, continues with his use of abstraction within this latest series to communicate his ideas and vision. His process always intertwined with finished composition demands the viewer to take note and participate in the echo left behind from its creation. Utilizing his past work as a springboard he without hesitation jumps head on into pure expression with dramatic color bursts, jolting all to full attention while beckoning for playful and joyous interaction.
Within this provocative exhibition, he pushes the unseen boundaries of mark making as expression. About this series he states: “My approach over the last 25 years is made by free association of intuitive mark making, or automatism and simultaneously representational abstraction. A game of aesthetic chess for both practices. I stretch further from the literal reference and deeper into abstraction. I carve out composition in an investigation of interscape. Some recognizable form may begin to become obvious and as the dance continues it may be worked into completion or destroyed in the event. I work in large blocks of time, often months without interruption on two-dozen or more surfaces at a time. This allows me to think quickly on my feet and make bold committed moves without fear of trying to preserve the “precious painting” or series of successful marks. I free up the canvas to explore risk taking and exploration of new possibilities.”
Through his painting, Orange moves beyond preconceived perception and takes a daring leap into the afterglow of sheer upbeat spontaneity, inviting all to come along for the ride. The shedding of past is apparent while looking directly to the unknown with exuberance and fearlessness. Within this series he brings strong and definite form into his composition, and as the show title, Prismatic Pareidolia references, visual suggestion of content. The departure is evident with the inclusion of paintings that tip into the realm of representational. Through splashes of color, forms come together to take us for that last walk through the garden, enjoying the final blooms while pollinators are busy gathering the last bit of pollen.
Orange’s work has been widely exhibited, reaching all four corners of the United States, including New York, Atlanta, Santa Fe, Portland as well as the Coos Bay Art Museum, Oregon. He has been presented awards from the Oregon Arts Commission, the Ford Family Foundation, and the Ucross Foundation Residency Fellowship. His work has been selected for exhibitions by Michael Klein of the Microsoft Collection, Nat Trottman of the Guggenheim, Bonnie Laing Malcomson formerly with the Portland Art Museum, Margaret Bullock of the Tacoma Art Museum, and many others. Academic institutions such as Portland State University, Peninsula College, Mt Hood Community College, Lower Columbia College, Oregon Coast Council for the Arts have all awarded him with solo exhibitions. He was also selected by the Oregon Arts Commission for the Art in The Governor’s Office program, a prestigious recognition as an Oregon artist. His work can be found in private, public, and corporate collections around the world.
August 2025 Exhibit
INEXTINGUISHABLE
M.J. Anderson
We are excited to welcome back the inimitable M.J. Anderson for her fourth solo exhibition, INEXTINGUISHABLE, at Imogen and opening in conjunction with Astoria Artwalk, Saturday, August 9th. Known as a dynamic powerhouse, Anderson has been sculpting marble for over 40 years, working from two studios, one here on the North Coast of Oregon (Nehalem) and the other in Carrara, Italy near the quarries where she quite often sources her marble. For this series, she focuses on the metaphor of flame. Her work, through her own voice and experience, brings the storyline of history, echoing the past, present and future. This special exhibition is part memoir, part rallying-cry, and part anthropology of the human soul. M.J. will be present and available to answer questions about her work and career from 5 – 8 pm during the artwalk. The exhibition will remain on view through September 8.
M.J. Anderson has cultivated a long and fascinating career, balancing a professional life that connects the Mediterranean to the Pacific Northwest. Her work exudes the romance and history of the Mediterranean while offering the allure and mystery of the rugged Pacific Northwest. Regarded as one of the Northwest’s most important sculptors, for this exhibition she brings marble of all types, focusing on the iconic importance of fire through history, including several of her coveted torsos, emulating mankind’s connection to flame. Beyond the monumental scope of this exhibition, it is a powerful example of color, texture, form and metaphor.
Her epic work in stone is a testimony to an ancient process of geological wonder, carefully coaxed into sublime form, by the hand and eye of the artist. Each piece brought painstakingly to a sensual tactile surface, through countless hours of carving and polishing, still holding the eons of history from origin. Her process from procuring her medium to finished work is not a simple one. Once stone has been selected from the quarry, work begins in her Italian studio, roughing out pieces to begin the process of revealing the beauty of form within, prior to being shipped to her studio in Nehalem where the real work begins.
About this powerful series she states: “Flames bring an inexhaustible fountain of metaphor and historical reference to how we evolve as a species. From age-old gatherings around the warmth of fire, flames have been the center of our life on the planet. A few torsos in the show are inspired by Saint and brave feminist Joan of Arc (who was vilified by the same powers whom her army saved) while other abstracted flame forms are symbolic of creative energies and passions. I have created a series of sculpture which reference a final test, as Dante (Purgatorio) must penetrate the wall of flames of purification to arrive in Seventh Heaven. My work is about the metaphoric flame which burns in each of us ---and the responsibility for each of us to keep that flame alive.”
In the essay, “The Scars that Give a Stone its Soul: M.J. Anderson ‘s Ineffable Beauties” by art critic, curator and author, Richard Speer, he writes:
“Inhabiting a physical and psychological space midway between the Mediterranean Sea and Pacific Ocean—the conceit undergirding her has inevitably imparted an ambidexterity to Anderson’s aesthetic orientation. She floats across paradigms. Although attuned to the figurative, biomorphic, and abstract work of 20th Century icons like Brancusi, Moore, and Noguchi, she has been more directly influenced by medieval altarpieces, Käthe Kollwitz, and Manuel Neri. These disparate influences, folded into her own lived experience, guided her to the lodestar of her own practice: a never-ceasing quest to capture the ineffable. Her finished sculptures testify to the ways in which an intuitive and restlessly inventive artist can part the veils that divide the material world from the metaphysical. The sculptures are exquisite objects d’art but also emblems, signifiers, and most enigmatically of all, presences.”
Anderson, who began her career as a textile artist always held a love of stone and all things Italian. Her first visit to Italy was in 1974 and ten years later establishing her studio in Carrara. When discussing her choice of stone as vehicle of expression she says, “Marble was once alive. Marble was made from dying coral reefs and sea life billions of years ago. It was compressed and transformed by incredible heat, then lifted up into mountains by the forces of geology…some stones have smells, so when I’m sculpting, I’m handling and smelling something that once was alive.” This sense of vitality carries over into her finished forms.
Anderson has been exhibiting her work extensively throughout the Northwest and abroad since the mid 1990’s. Her work is included to the permanent collection of the Portland Art Museum, Hallie Ford Museum, Salem, OR Ceasar’s Palace, Las Vegas and the Maroochydore Bushland Botanic Gardens & Noosa Botanic Gardens, QLD, Australia. She has been the recipient of a Pollack-Krasner Foundation Grant, a two-month Fellowship Award in Civita di Bagnoregio, Italy through the Northwest Institute of Architecture & Urban Studies in Italy, the recipient of a career grant through the Oregon Arts Commission and the Ford Family Foundation. Anderson also gratefully acknowledges receiving funds from The Artist Relief fund, administered by the Oregon Arts Commission in partnership with the Oregon Community Foundation and the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation.
INEXTINGUISHABLE
M.J. Anderson
We are excited to welcome back the inimitable M.J. Anderson for her fourth solo exhibition, INEXTINGUISHABLE, at Imogen and opening in conjunction with Astoria Artwalk, Saturday, August 9th. Known as a dynamic powerhouse, Anderson has been sculpting marble for over 40 years, working from two studios, one here on the North Coast of Oregon (Nehalem) and the other in Carrara, Italy near the quarries where she quite often sources her marble. For this series, she focuses on the metaphor of flame. Her work, through her own voice and experience, brings the storyline of history, echoing the past, present and future. This special exhibition is part memoir, part rallying-cry, and part anthropology of the human soul. M.J. will be present and available to answer questions about her work and career from 5 – 8 pm during the artwalk. The exhibition will remain on view through September 8.
M.J. Anderson has cultivated a long and fascinating career, balancing a professional life that connects the Mediterranean to the Pacific Northwest. Her work exudes the romance and history of the Mediterranean while offering the allure and mystery of the rugged Pacific Northwest. Regarded as one of the Northwest’s most important sculptors, for this exhibition she brings marble of all types, focusing on the iconic importance of fire through history, including several of her coveted torsos, emulating mankind’s connection to flame. Beyond the monumental scope of this exhibition, it is a powerful example of color, texture, form and metaphor.
Her epic work in stone is a testimony to an ancient process of geological wonder, carefully coaxed into sublime form, by the hand and eye of the artist. Each piece brought painstakingly to a sensual tactile surface, through countless hours of carving and polishing, still holding the eons of history from origin. Her process from procuring her medium to finished work is not a simple one. Once stone has been selected from the quarry, work begins in her Italian studio, roughing out pieces to begin the process of revealing the beauty of form within, prior to being shipped to her studio in Nehalem where the real work begins.
About this powerful series she states: “Flames bring an inexhaustible fountain of metaphor and historical reference to how we evolve as a species. From age-old gatherings around the warmth of fire, flames have been the center of our life on the planet. A few torsos in the show are inspired by Saint and brave feminist Joan of Arc (who was vilified by the same powers whom her army saved) while other abstracted flame forms are symbolic of creative energies and passions. I have created a series of sculpture which reference a final test, as Dante (Purgatorio) must penetrate the wall of flames of purification to arrive in Seventh Heaven. My work is about the metaphoric flame which burns in each of us ---and the responsibility for each of us to keep that flame alive.”
In the essay, “The Scars that Give a Stone its Soul: M.J. Anderson ‘s Ineffable Beauties” by art critic, curator and author, Richard Speer, he writes:
“Inhabiting a physical and psychological space midway between the Mediterranean Sea and Pacific Ocean—the conceit undergirding her has inevitably imparted an ambidexterity to Anderson’s aesthetic orientation. She floats across paradigms. Although attuned to the figurative, biomorphic, and abstract work of 20th Century icons like Brancusi, Moore, and Noguchi, she has been more directly influenced by medieval altarpieces, Käthe Kollwitz, and Manuel Neri. These disparate influences, folded into her own lived experience, guided her to the lodestar of her own practice: a never-ceasing quest to capture the ineffable. Her finished sculptures testify to the ways in which an intuitive and restlessly inventive artist can part the veils that divide the material world from the metaphysical. The sculptures are exquisite objects d’art but also emblems, signifiers, and most enigmatically of all, presences.”
Anderson, who began her career as a textile artist always held a love of stone and all things Italian. Her first visit to Italy was in 1974 and ten years later establishing her studio in Carrara. When discussing her choice of stone as vehicle of expression she says, “Marble was once alive. Marble was made from dying coral reefs and sea life billions of years ago. It was compressed and transformed by incredible heat, then lifted up into mountains by the forces of geology…some stones have smells, so when I’m sculpting, I’m handling and smelling something that once was alive.” This sense of vitality carries over into her finished forms.
Anderson has been exhibiting her work extensively throughout the Northwest and abroad since the mid 1990’s. Her work is included to the permanent collection of the Portland Art Museum, Hallie Ford Museum, Salem, OR Ceasar’s Palace, Las Vegas and the Maroochydore Bushland Botanic Gardens & Noosa Botanic Gardens, QLD, Australia. She has been the recipient of a Pollack-Krasner Foundation Grant, a two-month Fellowship Award in Civita di Bagnoregio, Italy through the Northwest Institute of Architecture & Urban Studies in Italy, the recipient of a career grant through the Oregon Arts Commission and the Ford Family Foundation. Anderson also gratefully acknowledges receiving funds from The Artist Relief fund, administered by the Oregon Arts Commission in partnership with the Oregon Community Foundation and the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation.
July 2025 Exhibit
what is earth but a home
New Paintings by Bethany Rowland
For July we are proud to be presenting a new series of paintings by Bethany Rowland who returns to Imogen Gallery for her seventh solo exhibition, “what is earth but a home.” Known for her soulful paintings, she once again delivers a powerful collection utilizing landscape, birds of prey and other wildlife to depict and remind all, the concept and importance of home on a global level. The exhibition opens during Astoria’s Second Saturday Artwalk, Saturday July 12 from noon – 8 pm. Rowland will be at the gallery from 5 - 8 pm that evening and available to answer questions about her work. The exhibition will remain on view through August 4.
Since childhood, Rowland has looked to the natural world to find order. Her existential take on the world forges a path to understanding through her emotive paintings, etched in nuance of contemplation. Placing focus on the wild, she gives voice to landscape and its inhabitants, spending countless hours of observation studying dramatic shifts of light, echoing through the walls of land carved out eons ago by geological sculpting. Her portraiture of raptors, equally compelling, act as totems to a profound sense of spirituality, offering a prayer of hope for all inhabitants to this place called home.
Rowland, who deems land and its inhabitants as spiritual guides, is a practiced and keen observer of nature. Once back in the studio, she infuses her dreamlike impressions to surface, allowing wildlife to emerge from background, coming forward as if to offer itself as shaman, providing comfort and strength. With subtle nuance of brush stroke, she crafts composition lending to the mysticism of landscape and animals she honors. Within this series, Rowland allows herself to go deeper into identity of what “home” is, defining space by intuition of what cannot be held, only felt. About this series she writes with honesty about her intuitive process and the concept of “home.” She states, “In creating a painting, I am searching for some kind of truth or truths to emerge in the interplay of feeling, remembering, witnessing, and paying attention. Whether a painting becomes a Red-Tail’s gaze or an imagined dream life of a mountain, the process involves conscious consideration as well as openness to the unbidden. I may not recognize what emerges – whether it is a painting gone astray or the beginning of something I didn’t know I knew or could express, the outcome is an opportunity to feel connected. My hope is that, in the midst of it all, we find openings with our senses and our hearts to revere what is our shared home.”
Some art enthusiasts may notice a subtle shift within this series, what is earth but a home. Bethany seems to carefully embrace the power of surrounding atmospheric quality. Much like the great painter J.M.W. Turner, she brings motion to life through unseen current and light quality, lending to the period of the romanticism movement of the late 18th century. The historic feel and quality of this series is delicately balanced with the drama of contemporary painting.
Rowland, who has been painting for over 25 years handles her medium, style and subject matter with unabashed confidence, carefully cultivating imagery that is a beautiful and evocative marriage of representation and abstraction. Combining quiet corners of complex layers of sheer color with definitive mark and gesture, she conveys emotion, a hint of melancholy, comfort, and acceptance within each composition. She readily cites such artists as Phil Sylvester of The Drawing Studio in Portland, OR as well as others including Andrea Schwartz-Feit, William Park and Royal Nebeker for giving her the courage to trust her own intuition in her practice. She understands form and allows herself freedom to explore the nuance of posture through the discipline of painting the human figure. Her figurative work has been juried into Clatsop Community College’s annual Au Naturel: The Nude in the 21st Century, for multiple exhibitions throughout its history. Her work is regularly included in the annual Sitka Art Invitational as well as the juried annual Cascade Aids Project art auction.
what is earth but a home
New Paintings by Bethany Rowland
For July we are proud to be presenting a new series of paintings by Bethany Rowland who returns to Imogen Gallery for her seventh solo exhibition, “what is earth but a home.” Known for her soulful paintings, she once again delivers a powerful collection utilizing landscape, birds of prey and other wildlife to depict and remind all, the concept and importance of home on a global level. The exhibition opens during Astoria’s Second Saturday Artwalk, Saturday July 12 from noon – 8 pm. Rowland will be at the gallery from 5 - 8 pm that evening and available to answer questions about her work. The exhibition will remain on view through August 4.
Since childhood, Rowland has looked to the natural world to find order. Her existential take on the world forges a path to understanding through her emotive paintings, etched in nuance of contemplation. Placing focus on the wild, she gives voice to landscape and its inhabitants, spending countless hours of observation studying dramatic shifts of light, echoing through the walls of land carved out eons ago by geological sculpting. Her portraiture of raptors, equally compelling, act as totems to a profound sense of spirituality, offering a prayer of hope for all inhabitants to this place called home.
Rowland, who deems land and its inhabitants as spiritual guides, is a practiced and keen observer of nature. Once back in the studio, she infuses her dreamlike impressions to surface, allowing wildlife to emerge from background, coming forward as if to offer itself as shaman, providing comfort and strength. With subtle nuance of brush stroke, she crafts composition lending to the mysticism of landscape and animals she honors. Within this series, Rowland allows herself to go deeper into identity of what “home” is, defining space by intuition of what cannot be held, only felt. About this series she writes with honesty about her intuitive process and the concept of “home.” She states, “In creating a painting, I am searching for some kind of truth or truths to emerge in the interplay of feeling, remembering, witnessing, and paying attention. Whether a painting becomes a Red-Tail’s gaze or an imagined dream life of a mountain, the process involves conscious consideration as well as openness to the unbidden. I may not recognize what emerges – whether it is a painting gone astray or the beginning of something I didn’t know I knew or could express, the outcome is an opportunity to feel connected. My hope is that, in the midst of it all, we find openings with our senses and our hearts to revere what is our shared home.”
Some art enthusiasts may notice a subtle shift within this series, what is earth but a home. Bethany seems to carefully embrace the power of surrounding atmospheric quality. Much like the great painter J.M.W. Turner, she brings motion to life through unseen current and light quality, lending to the period of the romanticism movement of the late 18th century. The historic feel and quality of this series is delicately balanced with the drama of contemporary painting.
Rowland, who has been painting for over 25 years handles her medium, style and subject matter with unabashed confidence, carefully cultivating imagery that is a beautiful and evocative marriage of representation and abstraction. Combining quiet corners of complex layers of sheer color with definitive mark and gesture, she conveys emotion, a hint of melancholy, comfort, and acceptance within each composition. She readily cites such artists as Phil Sylvester of The Drawing Studio in Portland, OR as well as others including Andrea Schwartz-Feit, William Park and Royal Nebeker for giving her the courage to trust her own intuition in her practice. She understands form and allows herself freedom to explore the nuance of posture through the discipline of painting the human figure. Her figurative work has been juried into Clatsop Community College’s annual Au Naturel: The Nude in the 21st Century, for multiple exhibitions throughout its history. Her work is regularly included in the annual Sitka Art Invitational as well as the juried annual Cascade Aids Project art auction.
